MURDER IN ANATOLIA - European Stability Initiative - ESI

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– 27 – “the person instigating and guiding Emre Gunaydin is the theology faculty member Ruhi Abat, who was guided by our [gendarmerie] commander Mehmet Ulger. Ruhi Abat had been working for 4-5 months with our field officer Mehmet Ulger.” 181 The anonymous author did not give any further information – he claimed that he feared being identified. The e-mail was not included in the October 2007 indictment. On 12 May 2008 Emre denied knowing anyone named Ruhi Abat. 182 His father later testified, however, that “Ruhi Abat came to the sports centre [the martial arts center of Emre‟s father] over a period of about one and a half months in 2003. Later two of his kids came there.” Emre‟s father explained, however, that in his view “Ruhi Abat has never seen my son in the sports hall. Emre was 14-15 years old [in 2003].” 183 As it turned out, Abat was indeed a researcher with an intense interest in missionary activities. This became clear when Abat testified as a witness on 13 April 2009, describing his work on missionaries in Malatya as “research that I consider important for religious and national values, and the unity of nation and state.” 184 According to Abat, his research was part of a nation-wide project allegedly undertaken by the Historical Research Foundation (Tarihi Arastirmalar Vakfi). 185 In Malatya it was conducted by a team of no less than seven researchers, 186 all of them academics from Malatya University. “I did not receive any payment related to this work. The participants did this voluntarily,” Abat told the court. 187 In his witness testimony Abat remained vague about the content of his research: “I did not do any independent study on missionary activities. There were two or three group studies. Every theology department would survey the missionary activities in its region … We tried to find out more on missionary activities in Malatya and Adiyaman.” 188 He refused to state his opinion on whether or not missionary activities were a crime. “An easy yes or no answer is not possible,” he told the court. 189 Abat admitted that he had also been in contact with the Malatya gendarmerie, including its head Mehmet Ulger. He insisted, however, that “most of these conversations [with Ulger] were about getting his support to prevent the closure of [Malatya University‟s] Theology Department.” 190 Abat claimed that he feared losing his university job and turned to Ulger in hope of putting pressure on the university rector to keep the department open. 191 Abat also claimed that he gave a lecture to the gendarmerie field commanders on “missionary activities in the 19 th and 20 th century.” After the lecture, he said, “both the police and the gendarmerie consulted me for information about my studies by phone or by coming to my office.” 192 181 Anonymous e-mail to the Association of protestant Churches in summer 2007. 182 Protocol of the 7 th Court Hearing, 12 May 2008, p. 10. 183 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 4. 184 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 11. 185 The Foundation appears as the publisher of books in the late 1990s. It has no website of its own. 186 Sukru Uslu, Suayip Ozdemir, Yusuf Benli, Hamdi Onay, Hulusi Arslan and Ahmet Sinanoglu. 187 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, pp. 11-12. 188 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 10. 189 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, pp. 10-13. 190 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 11; Fatih Hilmioglu, the President of Malatya University, had contacts to General Eruygur [see Cast of Characters]. Both are suspects in the Ergenekon trial. 191 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 10. 192 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 10. ~ www.esiweb.org ~
– 28 – Mehmet Ulger was the Malatya Gendarmerie Commander between January 2006 and July 2008. Testifying on the same day as Ruhi Abat, he told the court that he had met Abat in 2006 at a workshop on missionary activities. Ulger explained that his contacts with Abat were related to a seminar and the preparation of a conference. Ulger claimed to have called Abat to inquire about a document he had found, which was written in Arabic. 193 He explained: “My business meetings continue 24 hours a day. I don‟t remember whether I talked to Ruhi Abat from the office or from home. It might be that he called me at 11:30 at night.” 194 The lawyers of the victims‟ families were not convinced. Police had established that 1,415 phone calls had been made between Abat and the gendarmerie within a few months. 195 Why so many phone calls? Ulger explained that many calls were made by the gendarmerie “in order to obtain information from a faculty member.” 196 Mehmet Ulger also described the gendarmerie‟s general interest in missionary activities: “Within the gendarmerie, according to general characterizations, missionary activities are considered as „extreme right‟. They are not considered a crime. The gendarmerie‟s interest in missionary activities is the same as in other extreme right-wing and Islamist activities.” 197 Ulger said that he had heard about missionary activity in Turkey, but that he did not even know whether any took place in Malatya.” 198 He claimed that “during this period there was no research on missionary activities.” 199 Of Ruhi Abat, Ulger told the court in Malatya, “No, he is no informant. There has been no payment at all to him.” 200 Ulger was then also asked about the testimony of another witness, Veysel Sahin. Sahin had been arrested in May 2008 when hand grenades and explosives were found in his home. 201 Sahin, having spoken with Malatya prosecutors in December 2008, told them that he had moved to Malatya in November 2005 to open an office of the Iraqi Turkmen Front. 202 He claimed to have met Mehmet Ulger at the Iraqi Turkmen Front‟s office in March 2006. Ulger, he recalled, arrived wearing civilian clothes. Sahin recalls that Ulger also introduced himself as a business partner of the Malatya Arena Book Cafe. 193 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 15. 194 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 15. 195 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 15. The court had ordered the police to investigate the phone conversations between Ruhi Abata and the Malatya gendarmerie (Mehmet Ulger). 196 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 15. 197 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 14. Discussing the role of the gendarmerie columnist Ali Bayromoglu wrote: “Following February 28 [1997], the military took over posts traditionally controlled by the police and the governors. The gendarmerie moved from the rural area to the urban area. Security and Public Order Assistance Squads (Emniyet Asayis Yardimlasma Birlikleri, EMASYA) obtained authority above that of the governor. A domestic security structure has been established that posits society itself as being the greatest threat … Moreover, the power to gather intelligence in a country should not be in the military‟s hands. Today, it is the military bureaucracy that defines what threats exist, it is the military that gathers intelligence, assesses social incidents and bases all of its findings on internal security documents and not legal criteria.” Quote in “Almanac Turkey 2005 – Security Sector and Democratic Oversight”, DCAF-TESEV Series in Security Sector Studies, September 2006. 198 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 16. 199 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 14. 200 Protocol of the 16 th Court Hearing, 13 April 2009, p. 16. 201 As of December 2009 he is serving a 29 year prison sentence for armed assault and illegal possession of firearms and dangerous materials. Malatya Guncel, “Veysel Sahin‟e ceza yagdi”, 15 December 2009, http://www.malatyaguncel.com/news_detail.php?id=33677&uniq_id=1289319512. 202 The Iraqi Turkmen Front is the biggest party of the Turkmen (Turkish) minority in Iraq. ~ www.esiweb.org ~
Page 1 and 2: MURDER IN ANATOLIA CHRISTIAN MISSIO
Page 3 and 4: - I - CAST OF CHARACTERS The victim
Page 5 and 6: - III - Huseyin Yelki is a Christia
Page 7 and 8: - V - Dink and his family over many
Page 9 and 10: - 2 - organisation (Ulku Ocaklari)
Page 11 and 12: - 4 - 2006, a lawyer, Alparslan Ars
Page 13 and 14: - 6 - Security Council. 33 Througho
Page 15 and 16: - 8 - activities was not religious
Page 17 and 18: 3. MALATYA a. The lives of missiona
Page 19 and 20: - 12 - we live in England?” he wa
Page 21 and 22: - 14 - eliminate those doing missio
Page 23 and 24: - 16 - another human rights lawyer
Page 25 and 26: - 18 - “We started talking. Necat
Page 27 and 28: - 20 - policeman told Emre that the
Page 29 and 30: - 22 - Dogan wrote that in 2005 Bur
Page 31 and 32: - 24 - told Emre. “We will guaran
Page 33: - 26 - Yelki testified in court on
Page 37 and 38: - 30 - registered … Mehmet Ulger
Page 39 and 40: - 32 - difficult situation and to w
Page 41 and 42: - 34 - 5. CONCLUSION - THE MEANING
Page 43 and 44: - 36 - Everybody mentioned in this
Page 45 and 46: - 38 - ZEKI DAG knows Emre Gunaydin

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